Troubadour

From: The Troubadour <mike.agranoff@folkproject.org>

Sent: Saturday, February 29, 2020 6:30 PM

To: 'Board FP' <fullboard@folkproject.org>

Subject: Troubadour Booking Report, March 2020

How’re we doin?

Not a great month for Troubadour, but far from disastrous. We held two shows, with an average paid attendance of 64.0 (85.5 total attendance). We lost $3 for the month. Over the past 12 months, our average attendance was 92.4 paid (111.8 total), for a profit of $3,645. We shifted to the Terrace Room for the Small Potatoes show to accommodate Jacquie Manning’s mobility issues. And the 77 people in the room just about filled it to capacity. Nonetheless, the 55 paid attendees required us to kick in $142 to meet their $600 guarantee, giving us a loss of $112 for the show. I don’t mind occasional losses of that magnitude, provided they don’t occur too often. The other show with Poor Man’s Gambit drew a disappointing 73 paid, but met their guarantee for a profit of $109. Their show drew rave reviews from everyone there. (I’m telling you guys: Ya gotta listen to me when I tell you an unknown act is gonna be great.  )

Accessibility

The lack of handicapped accessibility of our stage gave cause for some discussion as to what to do about it. We got a donation from member Yolanda Fundora of some portable wheelchair ramps, which might or might not have been sufficient to access the stage if the performer entered from the side door, and we moved the piano and all the stuff that’s stored on the stage at that end. I suggest we try to lay them out and see if they would be workable. And if so, we should donate them to MUF so they can use them too.

Finally!

After 4 years of trying, I finally managed to find a mutually convenient date for us to present John Gorka again on September 11. Many thanks to Todd Dennison for moving the Open Stage to September 25 to allow that to happen.

New Bookings:

May 22: Oakes & Smith: Harmony-oriented singer-songwriter duo to open for Jesse Ruben. (Raise your hand if you don’t remember Jesse Ruben?)
Sept. 11: the aforementioned John Gorka. A likely sell-out.
Oct. 2: Máire Ní Chathasaigh & Chris Newman: Stunning Celtic harp & guitar duet from England
Nov. 6: Robert Jones & Matt Watroba: A Black and White duo to follow our upcoming Deeper than the Skin show in May, with an emphasis on community singing.

March highlight

March 27: Low Lily: First time at the Folk Project, a harmony-oriented songwriter trio with Celtic roots. A must-see dark horse. (Remember what I said about Poor Man’s Gambit?)

Respectfully submitted

Mike Agranoff

Program Chair

The Troubadour Acoustic Concert Series

(Formerly the Minstrel Acoustic Concert Series)

Morristown, NJ. USA